Why Michele Bachmann Touched a Nerve

This administration has been particularly reluctant to acknowledge the darker side of the Muslim Brotherhood. Though most chapters of the Brotherhood have ostensibly renounced violence and embraced democratic politics, the movement remains a terror organization in its ideology and incitement activities. Moreover, the Palestinian branch, Hamas, commits horrific acts of violence and raises funds under its auspices. The United States should not accept the legitimacy of the Brotherhood simply because it has succeeded in achieving unconscionable goals through peaceful means. “Had the Nazis denounced violence, would Hitler have become an acceptable chancellor for Germany?” notes Daniel Pipes. “Not likely.”

The consequences for U.S. national security of the Obama administration’s failure to name the enemy are quite serious. Most notable is the FBI’s failure to follow up on evidence that Maj. Nidal Hasan was corresponding via email with the late Anwar al-Awlaki in the months leading up to the 2009 Fort Hood massacre. Investigating American Muslims who communicate with radical jihadist clerics about the permissibility of killing American GIs was unfortunately considered too politically sensitive. Thirteen American soldiers died as a result.

Bachmann is being accused of racism because of her insinuation that Muslim applicants with questionable affiliations appointed to sensitive federal posts should be subjected to extra scrutiny. After decades of building a strong foundation of civil rights, social equality, and cultural tolerance in this country, many Americans are loathe to accept that these ideals must now be compromised in order to prevail against radical Islamism. However, while ethnic profiling may be objectionable as a method of combating car thefts, it is unfortunately essential to the robust defense of American national security. Whether we should go so far as to establish a House Committee on Internal Security, as some have suggested, is debatable. Whether Islamic radicalism constitutes a special danger requiring special means is not.